Di2

[Binky]

Webbo2, to get battery reading etc on Wahoo you need a D-fly unit as they are known. For my system its this little gadget which connects to rear derailleur

The one above is the EW-EU101 but if your bike is new might be different.

 

[Webbo2]

I googled what to do a video came up. Which said turn your unit on, phone on, click your gears a few times to wake them up. Go to sensors on your unit and Di2 should show and just click on it and there it was.

 

[Dogtrousers]

Incidentally I don't hear much about the SRAM offering eTap. It seems that DI2 is used as a synonym for electronic shifting. Campag have one too.

Is DI2 somehow better (reviews don't think so) or is it just market share driving that.

 

[Binky]

I googled what to do a video came up. Which said turn your unit on, phone on, click your gears a few times to wake them up. Go to sensors on your unit and Di2 should show and just click on it and there it was.

So you are getting gear information and battery level on your head unit (Wahoo Bolt/Roam etc) without a D-Fly?
Great if so, maybe new versions don't need one.

 

[fossyant]

Incidentally I don't hear much about the SRAM offering eTap. It seems that DI2 is used as a synonym for electronic shifting. Campag have one too.

Is DI2 somehow better (reviews don't think so) or is it just market share driving that.

SRAM doesn't seem to be as reliable. The guy I was talking to whilst in hospital with my hip, had a mate that ended up without his bike for about 6 months as the etap mech went wonky.

Having had an Italian car, with all the wiring made by Bosch, it still went wonky, not sure I'd trust them with bike electronics.

 

[Alex321]

So you are getting gear information and battery level on your head unit (Wahoo Bolt/Roam etc) without a D-Fly?
Great if so, maybe new versions don't need one.

I think that is true. The modern versions are "semi-wireless", which is why they also have betteries in the shifters, but that also means they are transmitting and that can be picked up by the head units.

The older wired versions needed something added to transmit anything, which is the D-fly you need.

 

[Rhythm Thief]

The issue I have with electronic gears - and as I mentioned earlier, in fairness my only experience is with an early version with 2015 Ultegra Di2 - is the lack of serviceability. My bike, a secondhand Scott Addict 15, arrived without the gears working properly. To fix it, I had to Google "Di2 not working", download the Shimano app, download an older version of the Shimano app because the new version didn't recognise my bike, navigate through no end of troubleshooting menus to be told that the app couldn't find the battery, Google some more to find that in this case I should "substitute the battery for a known good battery" like we've all got two or three of those knocking about, before finally giving up and taking the bike to a local shop who relieved me of £250 to fix it. For context, I could have sorted out any (and I mean any) issues with mechanical shifting for a few quid on cables in about half an hour, all else being equal.
I get the convenience of it, I accept that things have probably moved on since my first gen system was built. I accept that it's useful for people with weaker hands and I'm really not trying to put people off using it: if it floats your boat and makes your cycling enjoyable, fantastic. But for me, I can't help but feel that, as so often, "maintenance free" translates as "cannot be maintained", and being able to maintain my own bikes is much more important to me than marginal performance gains or being able to see what gear I'm in an a head unit. I've just rebuilt a 1982 Claud Butler with its original drivetrain and no more new parts than a couple of gear cables. Not that this is the be all and end all (and of course, for some riders it's not important at all), but can anyone honestly see an amateur home mechanic being able to do that with a Di2 bike in 45 years?

 

[Yellow Saddle]

I presume that was directed at me. For the record I love Di2 as a means of changing gear I am just not up to scratch with the app side of things and wasn't aware that you had to do all this stuff.

My simple, pre technology boom mind, just assumed you charged it every so often and life would be ok.

Not at you actually, it was a bit of a shotgun volley at all late adopters who grumble about new stuff. Having said all that, I catch myself complaing about exactly the three examples I gave above.

I get your point about apps - some of them are a bit unnecessary but I run my Di2 without apps. I have a shimano head unit that displays the gear and the battery level. The last time I used the app was when I installed and configured the system. I ldon't Strava or count steps or monitor my this or that. But that's me. Some folks get pleasure from it and that's good. Whatever floats your boat, is cool.

I did recognise the downtube shifter comment as ironic and deliciously vexatious though.

 

[Chislenko]

So after a bit of investigation the Mahle head unit that comes with the bike does not talk to Di2, neither does my Bryton head unit.

But a quick Google search informs me there are in fact apps to tell you when to go to the toilet 🙂🙂